Rockpooling

at KINGSTON BEACH, SHOREHAM-BY-SEA
with Andy Horton

The purple numbers (in brackets) are the locations on the map above

30 September 2011
An early morning visit (7:50 am - 9:20 am) caught the turn of the tide (7:51 am) which had receded past the Chart Datum Gauge (1) on Kingston Beach. Under the few large boulders just above Chart Datum, I discovered the expected Shore Crabs, Carcinus maenas, one small Edible Crab, Cancer pagurus, frequent small Squat Lobsters, Galathea squamifera, occasional small Hairy Crabs, Pilumnus hirtellus, a few small Common Starfish Asterias rubens on the underside, and a handful of small Rock Gobies, Gobius paganellus, in the muddy puddle depression. One scarce discovery was a single specimen of the sea anemone Sagartiogeton undatus, attached to a pebble under the largest boulder. Very frequently tiny Long-clawed Porcelain Crabs, Pisidia longicornis, were seen on the underside of rocks and boulders. 
 

One scarce discovery was a single specimen of the sea anemone Sagartiogeton undatus, attached to a pebble under the largest boulder. The anemone discovered had its tentacles completely retracted and it needed a keen eye to spot the inconspicuous anemone.  It has been discovered on Kingston beach before.

Winkle shells scuttling across the sand were about eight small Common Hermit Crabs Pagurus bernhardus. 
The prawn net landed hundreds of small prawns, Palaemon, and when the incoming tide reached about one metre on the gauge small fish were included in the net: juvenile Bullheads, Taurulus bubalis, which were returned, very small Corkwing Wrasse, Symphodus melops, fry which were mostly returned and one horizontally striped Ballan Wrasse, Labrus bergylta, Too tiny to be caught in the net a Worm Pipefish, Nerophis lumbriciformis, swam/wriggled next to the Irish Moss hanging from the metal groyne at Chart Datum. A few Long-legged Spider Crabs Macropodia rostrata, crawled over the black netting. 
At mid-tide level (4), I only lifted a couple of rocks to find one very small Blenny, Lipophrys pholis. In a mid-tide pool next to the pipeline (8)  50+ small gobies darted to and fro with one fully adult Rock Goby that darted under a boulder and was netted when the boulder was lifted. It was returned to the pool. The smaller gobies were not captured but were thought to be juvenile Common Gobies. Pomatoschistus microps, 
Oysters and Dogwhelks Nucella lapillus were noted. 
BMLSS Rockpooling
BMLSS Rock Pool Fish
BMLSS Molluscs

28 September 2011
It was dark by the time I arrived to meet the dusk low spring tide below Chart Datum (1) on Kingston Beach. In the first prawn net dip in shallow water netted four juvenile Bullheads, Taurulus bubalis, which were returned. Later one very small Corkwing Wrasse, Symphodus melops, fry and two small Long-legged Spider Crabs Macropodia rostrata, were found in the net. There was a small Common Starfish Asterias rubens, on the underside of a boulder and at least two small Squat Lobsters, Galathea squamifera, but it was really too dark on a moon less night and I went home early. 

30 August 2011
A Little Egret stalked the shallows on a low spring tide. But there were only small prawns and two juvenile Bullheads, Taurulus bubalis, netted near Chart Datum (1) on Kingston Beach. A few Squat Lobsters, Galathea squamifera, and a very small Common Starfish Asterias rubens, hid under boulders. A Tern dived into the calm sea and an Oystercatcher flew overhead before landing on the sand and then flew away squawking. 

17 May 2011
Conditions on the low spring tide at Kingston Beach were inimical to rockpooling because of the black silt near Chart Datum. I did catch a few large Edible Prawns, Palaemon serratus, a very small Common Starfish Asterias rubens, prised from under a rock, a small sea anemone Sagartia troglodytes on the underside of a boulder, a small Common Hermit Crab Pagurus bernhardus in a Periwinkle shell; and I noted frequent large Dogwhelks Nucella lapillus, and their eggs and some of them were very large for the species and included a brown specimen. 

22 April 2011
At the last minute I decided to postpone my shrimping trip and make a visit to Kingston Beach on a 0.63 metres low tide. There was very little to discover: 

Only one large Edible Prawn, Palaemon serratus, and a small adult Rock Goby, Gobius paganellus, were noteworthy.

19 April 2011
 On Kingston Buci Beach (at the entrance to Shoreham Harbour) an adult Sand Smelt, Atherina presbyter, got stranded alive in a mid-tide shallow pool (6) as the tide receded to Chart Datum.  It had a dozen dark blotches over its streamlined body. I netted the 14 cm long fish and released it into the sea and watched it swim of into deeper water. Its survival is unlikely without the rest of the shoal. Otherwise, the rockpooling trip was a very poor result with about ten small Edible Crabs, Cancer pagurus, the only thing that would be small enough for the aquarium. Dogwhelks, Nucella lapillus, had returned with their egg cases frequently seen on rocks all over the shore. 
 

25 March 2011 An adult Blenny, Lipophrys pholis, was discovered at mid-tide level on Kingston Beach.  Common Mouse-ear (a tiny wild plant) was seen in flower above the high tide mark.

11 August 2010
A very quick visit to Kingston Beach to collect a few mussels and I spotted scores of Rock Goby, Gobius paganellus, fry darting around in the highest shallow pools by the groynes plus a single large Snakelocks Anemone, Anemonia viridis, in an equally shallow pool. This anemone is unusual on the shore at Shoreham.

26 May 2010
On a tide that was a metre or so above Chart Datum, I caught half a dozen juvenile (first year) Blennies, Lipophrys pholis, and three Bullheads, Taurulus bubalis, in the prawn net. 

1 February 2010
There was a large range of seven metre tides measured by WXTide at Shoreham Harbour (Kingston Beach), from 6.9 metres high to minus 0.1 metres below Chart Datum. 
BMLSS Tides

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22 September 2009
At the early morning 0.5 metre equinoctial low spring tide at Kingston Beach (entrance to Shoreham Harbour) there was a patrolling Little Egret, a Grey Heron feeding as the tide came in around the Chart Datum mark, and two Cormorants, at first fanning their wings and then actively searching for fish and prawns.

An Eel, Anguilla anguilla, was discovered under a rock and in the mid-tidal pools under the wooden groyne, I netted one 5-Bearded Rockling, Ciliata mustela. As the tide came in there were a few small Bullheads, Taurulus bubalis and occasional very small first year Corkwing Wrasse, Symphodus melops, two emerald green first year Ballan Wrasse, Labrus bergylta, with mostly small prawns, and one tiny Squat Lobster Galathea squamifera, and a few Common Hermit Crabs, Pagurus bernhardus, one in a Periwinkle shell. Very small (25 mm) first year Blennies, Lipophrys pholis, and Rock Gobies, Gobius paganellus, were very frequently to be discovered in the saucer-like pools under both small and large rocks. 
BMLSS Rockpooling

18 September 2009
A rather hurried visit on the low spring tide to Kingston Beach only recorded small prawns, but there were a few small Bullheads, Taurulus bubalis and two first year Corkwing Wrasse, Symphodus melops, in the large prawn net at the Chart Datum mark. There was also a tiny Long-legged Spider Crab, Macropodia rostrata.

17 September 2009
The Worm Pipefish, Nerophis lumbriciformis, caught in June 2008 died in my home aquarium, probably killed by the Rock Goby or large prawns. 

10 September 2009
An early morning low tide visit to Kingston Beach, Shoreham with Tiger Aspect Productions Ltd, to film the Blenny sequence for a TV four programme series called The Seasons with Alan Titchmarsh, recorded the expected Blennies, Lipophrys pholis, a large Rock Goby, Gobius paganellus, half a dozen large Edible Prawns, Palaemon serratus, and a notable young green Ballan Wrasse, Labrus bergylta.

26 May 2009
An early prawning expedition captured a meal of large Prawns Palaeamon serratus, at the Chart Datum marker, plus a few edible-sized Brown Shrimps, Crangon, and a couple of very small Blennies, Lipophrys pholis. 

25 May 2009
A brief rockpooling foray in the early morning to Kingston Buci Beach, east Shoreham, was much more productive than the previous day.  A more promising start was found with frequent (enough for a meal) large Prawns Palaeamon serratus, at the Chart Datum marker, and in the prawn net came a capture of a Corkwing Wrasse, Symphodus melops , an adult Blenny, Lipophrys pholis, and two smaller ones, with a medium-sized Bullhead, Taurulus bubalis. Turning a few rocks uncovered a small Edible Crab Cancer pagurus, two juvenile Rock Gobies, Gobius paganellus,  two more Blennies, and at least one of the tiny shrimp-like crustacean Athanas nitescens. Oysters and the usual molluscs were present. I noted the largest expanse of the eggs of the Dogwhelk, Nucella lapillus, since I began recording on this beach in 1979. This was clear evidence of recovery since TBT pollution. A few (at least two) large grey specimens of this gastropod were seen on the mussel beds. A few live Cockles were lying about the surface of the sand. A Little Egret was feeding on the tideline to the east. 
The purple variety of Goat's Beard was just beginning to open in flower on Kingston Buci Beach.

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23 June 2008
A Snakelocks Anemone, Anemonia viridis, seen in the pool underneath the second groyne (5) was unusual for this beach. 

3 June 2008
A small Worm Pipefish, Nerophis lumbriciformis, wriggling under a rock on Kingston Beach, was an unusual discovery on this or any local shore. In the mid-tidal pools under the wooden groyne, I netted one 5-Bearded Rockling, Ciliata mustela. Occasional  small Blennies, Lipophrys pholis, and one small Edible Crab Cancer pagurus, hid under rocks with hundreds of tiny Shore Crabs, Carcinus maenas, scuttling everywhere with a few adults under rocks. The tiny shrimp Athanas nitescens was seen in the pools under rocks a few times. 
Previous Report of a Worm Pipefish
British Marine Life Study Society
 

31 May 2008

6 May 2008
A low spring tide brought very frequent small prawns, a few small Blennies, Lipophrys pholis, and a few small Rock Gobies, Gobius paganellus, under rocks, mostly at mid-tide level. 

30 April 2008
A young Red Fox was discovered lying dead on the shingle on Kingston Beach. 

Report by Peter Talbot-Elsden

 

Kingston Beach Reports 2007

Link to Kingston Rockpooling 2006